The unhappiest jobs in America

I worked as a Registered Nurse for about 10 years on a Medical/Surgical Unit.  It was the most horrible, stressful, nightmare of a job I have ever had.  I would come home and it would take me two days off to be able to even think clearly.  I had heart palpitations and high blood pressure.  Finally I quit, and found a job as a Psychiatric Nurse.  Didn't know what to expect, all I knew was that nothing could be worse than the hellhole I came out of.  And I was right, in fact, it was like going from hell to heaven.  I have worked Psychiatric five years and I love going to work.  I feel like I am really making a difference in people's lives now.  No more running to and fro like a mindless idiot, having six or seven people scream and yell "I want this done now!"  Instead now I have time to sit down and find out what a particular patient really needs, what would help them.  I have learned to really listen to patients, find out why they got where they are, to be part of an encouraging team of professionals to help them see that the hard times are 99% of the time only temporary, and the best is yet to come.  So just to clarify, not all nursing jobs are horrible, nightmarish scenarios.  I was fortunate to find one that I love.

I am an RN and agree that I am unhappy with my job....I fundamentally like caring for people, but everything else involved just isn't worth it. Would never have become an RN if I knew the schooling involved or what being a nurse really meant. I work 13-16 hour days, nights, weekends, holidays-I have a little girl and family lives 3+ hours away and it is sad to have to pick and choose what events you can do on your weekends off and missing holidays with children is really hard.  I understand that patients and their families are under stress when hospitalized, but never realized how nasty people can be to the person that is trying to care for your loved one. Doctors are VERY disrespectful! I have told stories of doctor behavior, and a lot of people in non-medical professions agree that a lot of these situations would lead to reprimanding or firing, but not in healthcare! Nurses only get 30 minutes for lunch and we're lucky if we even get that-can't tell you how many days I have simply not had time to leave the floor. Nurses are exposed to a lot of nasty stuff and it is scary to think on a day to day bases how many chemicals (medications, cleaning solutions), biological hazards (HIV, Hepatitis, etc.), and physical hazards (trying to lift 400lb patients, combative patients that hit and scratch, and pinch) we deal with.  Nurses do not get the compensation they deserve-we are the eyes and ears of the doctor-yes the doctor may do the surgery and write the orders, but the doctor only sees you 1 time a day for a few minutes, it's nurses that clue the doc in on issues or concerns.  My husband is an engineer at a metal plating company and we started our jobs at about the same time and we started out with about the same salary-5 years later he now makes $30,000 more than me and gets bonuses several times a year-his job is stressful and he doesn't care for it much, but at least he is making good money and no one is going to die at his job if he makes a mistake! Yeah most people don't like their jobs and I am happy to have a job, but I am unhappy enough with my profession that I am willing to make modifications to my lifestyle so that hopefully in a few years I won't be a nurse or will work only part-time.  I would say well over 50% of the nurses I work with would never choose nursing if they could do it again and I currently have 3 nursing friends that are all looking to get out of the nursing profession.

I dont know where the information comes from. If you want a job with endless opportunities, a median salary of 62k and one that allows you to help others then being a Registered Nurse is the job. I have been doing it for 23 years and i could not ask for a more satisfying career.

I'm a little surprised that the number two job here is RN. Based on compensation, that just doesn't make sense. My mom is an RN and yes she seems pissed about her job often, but that seems to be a result of two factors: unruly patients and ridiculous schedules. She makes six- figures by herself though, so I'm pretty sure RNs complaints are not in the compensation dept.

Nurses carry far too much legal burden and stress for the amount of compensation rewarded for the position.  Patients who are unhappy with either their health condition or frustration with the doctors will often take out that frustration on the nursing staff.  Unhappy patients will often call management to complain, which then comes back around on the nurse.  The work environment is also high stress; constant noise of alarms and work phone in pocket that is constantly ringing.  In a 12 and one half hour day I rarely get time to take my mandated rest breaks and usually get my lunch after 8hrs. of work. ( A work day is supposed to have two 15 min. breaks and two 30 min. meal breaks.)  I usually just take a 30 min. lunch due to the amount of work that has to be accomplished in a timely fashion in order to maintain patient satisfaction and safety. 

  I would never recommend going into nursing.   -sad to say!

I am a bit surprised to see Registered Nurse as number 2. It may very well be one of the most stressful jobs, but they must not take in to account the reward you get from your work. Being a Nurse can be overwhelming, but I absolutely love what I do, and it can also be extremely rewarding. When someone comes in with an allergic reaction and you can help them breath again, or the look you get from a pregnant woman who has had some bleeding when you find her baby's heartbeat and tell her it's OK. There is nothing like being a Nurse, even if the stess of the job brings down our happiness score. I think I could make up some research questions that would put Registered Nurse at the top of the list for happiest occupations too.

add to that municiapl planner, a thankless job working 2-3 nites a week and taking a lot of guff from the public and your respective bosses, both administrative and political..

You make the job what it is.  If you like what you do then it is enjoyable.  Others like to cook others don't.  Others like to exercise others are too lazy and say what's the point torturing yourself an hour a day.  Some people paint others find it boring.  I say be glad that you have a job.  Just imagine the flip side:  No job. No money. No food.  Always consider the less fortunate:  The one dying in a hospital bed.  The very poor you see on the sidewalk or in the news or in other countries.  The people in prison.